Chapter 172 Lai Wenguang died in Yangzhou (1)
The Dongnian Army entered Luzhong again, and Li Hongzhang quickly moved from Jining to Jinan, but did not meet Ding Baozhen, the governor of Shandong.
Li Hongzhang said: Nian Ni is cunning and good at moving. If our army advances quickly, it will tire and may be taken advantage of. Moreover, they can steal food everywhere, but I have to pack the food and move forward. If you lose in a forced confrontation, you will be hundreds of miles away.
Ding Baozhen said: "I have ordered all places to strengthen the walls and clear the fields. If thieves go against the wilds and have nothing to plunder, they will be in great embarrassment if they fail to use their plans."
Li Hongzhang said: When Nian Ni went south into northern Jiangsu, most of our troops were stranded in the middle of Lu. Suqian was on the defensive line. There were no long walls for more than 200 miles. The Liutang River was tortuous and slow, with a depth of only two feet. All the rivers in Shuyang were The beach can be crossed everywhere. The thieves lingered for a month and stopped after a brief taste. They wanted to lure our army into northern Jiangsu and returned to the north to peek at the transport defense above Jining. Now they are running eastward, and they have the same intention.
Ding Baozhen said: At the beginning of Zeng Digong's siege, the thieves rebelled across Shandong, Henan, Anhui and Hubei. They rode many horses and ran thousands of miles. Although the thieves are galloping day by day, they are blocked by four rivers. They can be seen within dozens of miles and fight every day. Their weapons are blunt and rotten, and their soldiers and horses are tired. Our army has sharp guns and cannons, waiting for work at leisure. It is easy to catch up and fight. Always win. Nowadays, the rebels have entered the middle of Lu. They are already the afterglow of the setting sun and grasshoppers in the autumn, and they have reached the end of their road!
Li Hongzhang said: Nian Ni's great skill lies in cavalry combat, and the strength of our army lies in firearms. I have ordered all armies to prepare for battle in an orderly manner, with densely packed guns and artillery, thick wings to prevent outflanking, and strict scouting to prevent ambushes. The team is all in good order. After defeating Zhubei, they also organize their team and move forward.
Ding Baozhen said: Wu Yi's army pursued and suppressed the disease day and night. Brother Zhaoqing and the soldiers shared the joys and sorrows, riding in the formation, going forward in an indomitable way, and going through hardships, he actually coughed up blood. I immediately sent a famous doctor from Jifu to treat brother Zhaoqing's injuries.
Li Hongzhang said: Thank you, Master Ding, for taking care of me. Li thought that the war was fierce and the generals had the same hatred, so how could it differ from person to person? All the generals fought bloody battles, and Li Zhaoqing was slightly injured and could not get off the saddle. Let Lailun assemble a regiment, and our army will be divided into five groups. If there is a little negligence, we may fall into the same trap. Immediately send the order, Li Zhaoqing's Wu Yijun, Yang Dingxun's Xunziying, Chen Zhenbang's Chu Shengjun, all join Liu Mingchuan's command, and work together to sneak out. Tracking eastward, Zhou Shengbo and Zhou Shengchuan's Sheng and Chuan 2nd Battalions temporarily joined the Ding Army to protect the transportation and guard the road ahead, and prevent the thieves from returning.
When Liu Ming received the order, he couldn't laugh or cry. He said to his nephew and commander of the right army Liu Shengxiu: Chen Zhenbang is Chen Guorui's adopted son, and his Chu Shengjun was originally under Chen Guorui. If he disobeys my military order, wouldn't it delay a major event.
Liu Shengxiu said: How difficult is this? Quickly summon Chen Zhenbang and get straight to the point. If they can cooperate, they can cooperate. If not, ask him to climb to a higher branch.
Liu Mingchuan summoned Chen Zhenbang, the famous commander-in-chief, to explain the interests and dangers.
Chen Zhenbang kowtowed to pay homage to the inscription and said: Chen's father was unruly and domineering by nature. He did not care about his relatives and would plunder at every turn. It was indeed a fault that both humans and gods were angry about.
Liu Ming preached: Brother Chen is so generous, where does Duke Chen Guorui appear?
Chen Zhenbang said: Report to Liu Shuai. Last month he went to Beijing to go to the Ministry to be on standby.
Liu Ming preached: Chen Gongguorui always strives to be the first in battles, makes decisions before the battle, and often finds opportunities to find generals and talents that are rare. However, he is also moody, and he often breaks the wall and only causes trouble. If a person has no faith, he does not know what is possible. How can Mr. Chen only have no faith?
Chen Zhenbang said: A humble position has no character. I am willing to follow Liu Shuai through fire and water, even if I die.
Liu Ming preached: Thank you very much, Brother Chen. Please pass on my order quickly and learn from the situation. When the armies engage in battle again, they must first use foreign guns and cannons to first dampen the momentum of the Nian bandits. Then the cavalry will surround the two wings and attack the three armies on the left, center and right. If we advance together and attack together, we will win the battle.
The Nien Army from the East entered Shandong, attacked east and west, and fought in the south and north for half a year. They were extremely exhausted and the morale of the army was weakening. On the tenth day of October, when I arrived at Qingzhou, I heard that there was food in Wei County. I hurried to get some food but stayed there for three days.
Liu Mingchuan found out and gathered 40,000 people to surround and attack him.
Lai Wenguang and Ren Zhu were unprepared and fought three times in one day. They were defeated in all three battles and lost their best troops one after another. General Zhang Dayou, Nian general Li Zongshi, Chen Huaizhong, Pan Guisheng, Deng Changan, etc. could not escape, so they all dismounted and knelt down.
Liu Mingchuan found out that the Eastern Nian army was weak, so he ordered the entire army to pursue them on the sly. He also ordered the surrendered generals Pan Guisheng, Deng Chang'an and others to go south quickly and wait for the enemy with ten thousand taels of silver and five-grade tops.
On November 19, 1867, Liu Mingchuan, Shanqing, Wendekler, Liu Shengxiu, Chen Zhenbang and other troops pursued them to Ganyu, Jiangsu.
When Liu Mingchuan and other troops came to the city, King Lu Renzhu was not afraid. He said to King Zun Lai Wenguang: "Leave the city empty for the monsters, and we will quickly go to the dense forest south of the city to set up an ambush. Liu Yao has won consecutive victories and regained the city. If he is satisfied with his victory, he will be unprepared and take the opportunity to kill him."
Lai Wenguang said: If you fight back with all your strength, you will definitely win! Immediately spread the lie, we will go to Qingkou, cross Liutang and go south.
When Liu Ming sent troops to Ganyu, he also felt that there was a deception and gave urgent orders: Shanqing and Wendelek's cavalry went out to the east of the city to attack; Chen Zhenbang, Xu Bangdao, and Chen Fenglou detoured from the west of the city; Liu Mingchuan himself led 20,000 Chinese troops to attack Go out of the south gate, gather together as a group, and go forward together.
When the troops of Liu Mingchuan, Shanqing and Chen Zhenbang were marching, yellow mist suddenly fell from the sky and spread across the fields, making no one visible. Suddenly there was a sound of cannon, Ren Zhu took the lead, and the killing general came out. Behind him, thousands of troops rode into the formation, and they were like thousands of spears, and they were invincible.
Ren Zhu was so fierce that Shan Qing did not dare to engage in the battle, so he only fired his guns in turns, and then drove away after a few moves. Liu Mingchuan was shocked and was hesitating when Pan Guisheng suddenly picked up a foreign spear and attacked from behind. Ren Zhu was unprepared and fell from his horse. And died. Pan Guisheng then went around the formation and shouted: King Lu has been shot to death! King Lu was shot to death!
When Lai Wenguang heard this, he felt as if he had lost his courage and courage, and no longer had the will to fight. He fought his way out of the siege and headed north. On the 23rd, they encountered Pan Ding's Xinding army in Shangzhuang Town, Haizhou.
Pan Ding's new soldiers came in three groups, fiercely; Lai Wenguang retreated immediately after the battle, and left in a hurry.
Pan Dingxin was overjoyed and reported quickly: Not long after Ming's army killed Ren Zhu, the thief chieftain, Ding's tribe also captured Ren Jinbao, Ren Zhu's younger brother. They also obtained 2,000 thief heads and no weapons or horses. That night, the puppet leader of the fifth battalion Li Zongshi led five hundred horse thieves to surrender.
Li Hongzhang cried with joy after receiving the report, and said to the registered admiral Guo Songlin: "After two years of rebellion, we have finally achieved something. Ren Zhu is as powerful as a jade four-eyed dog. If Ren Ni dies, Lai Ni will no longer have anything to rely on. The army is surrounding him." It can be destroyed in a day.
Guo Songlin said: "I have informed Li Shuai that I can mount my horse and kill the thief after I recover from my leg injury."
Li Hongzhang said: It has been recently known that the battle of Yinlong River was caused by Liu Sheng's failure to make three promises; Liu Sheng's eagerness to perform meritorious service almost missed the important event; to put down the Nien bandits, let's discuss the merits and demerits. Zhaoqing suffered from coughing up blood and could not be cured after long-term treatment. Zimei temporarily led Wu Yi's army, and gathered the armies of Ming, Ding, Sheng, and Liang to surround Laini.
